It snowed twice last week in Charlotte, North Carolina where I live. A rare occurrence. Snow is so rare here that residents get a little panicky when it’s in the forecast. They start doomsday prepping, buying, and hoarding at the grocery store.
This happened last week. It happened repeatedly throughout the 2020 pandemic, not because of snow, but because of general uncertainty. You might have witnessed similar patterns where you live.
It’s fascinating to observe how all the unhealthiest, least nutritious food is the first to disappear from the shelves. Every aisle of chips, cookies, and frozen pizzas is a barren wasteland picked clean. There’s nothing left for even the most industrious scavenger.
If you walk over to the produce section, however, there is a bounty of fresh, delicious food fit for kings and queens. All the healthiest, most nutritious food is not only available, but overflowing. Fruits and vegetables of every size, sort, and shape are in abundance, even in the frozen section.
All these moments of emotional frenzy do is bring to the surface and make transparent what already happens in all the other weeks too. Healthy, nutritious food is skipped over by a large majority of shoppers in favor of unhealthy, low nutrition alternatives. Given the choice, people are consistently choosing to satisfy shorter-term impulse rather than longer-term purpose.
Of course these repeated choices have unavoidable consequences. Our biological systems are built on quality in, quality out. Put nutrient rich, healthy food in your body consistently and your body responds in kind. Put nutrient weak, unhealthy food in your body consistently and your body responds in kind. The cause-and-effect relationship is extraordinarily simple and obvious.
Quality in, quality out isn’t just for food. Nutrient rich or nutrient weak isn’t limited to what you consume in your body, but also what you consume with your mind. The things you watch, read, listen to, and discuss.
Given the choice, you can satisfy your short-term impulse or you can feed your long-term purpose. Turn left down down the sugary aisle or turn right down the nutrient aisle.
You already know which way the majority turns and the results the majority get.
Answer the call. Do the work.
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